Four years ago, mother-of-two Heidi Shae, was working a normal job, doing normal things, living a normal small-town life in the Northern Territory town of Katherine, three hours south of Darwin.
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But a tragic car crash - that left her sister and a friend dead - turned Mrs Shae's world upside down in the blink of an eye.
Severely injured, Mrs Shae was unable to return to work.
As her recovery dragged on and weeks turned into months, Mrs Shae turned to a hobby her then six-year-old son had discovered as his healing place: animals.
"My son has selective mutism. But he speaks to animals," she said.
"He speaks their language and has a very special bond."
With her junior animal tamer by her side, Mrs Shae spent more and more time with her animals - ducks, goats, guinea pigs, rabbits and chickens at first - and also tried her hand at wildlife rescue, nursing young, orphaned wallabies.
"To animals, it doesn't matter if you're different. If you don't speak, if you're injured, if you have scars, if you suffer from anxiety or if you have a dicky leg.
"In the animal world you can be different and still sparkle.
"I think that's why both my son and I turned to animals. They don't talk badly about anything, they are just good for your soul."
But as the menagerie at Mrs Shae's Emungalan Road home grew, so grew her desire to share her soothing animal experiences with others.
"It started off as a weekend hobby.
"We had a few very friendly, tamed animals, and decided to share them with children at the markets one Saturday morning."
Never in her dreams could Mrs Shae have predicted how that sultry Katherine market morning would change her life - and that of her family and of hundreds of children across the Northern Territory.
"The first day was really busy, and things just grew from there."
The Barnyard Mobile Petting Zoo was born.
Now into her second year, the zoo has turned into a full-time job for Mrs Shae - a full-time dream job.
She is not only a regular at the markets, she also visits the local nursing home and travels across the Northern Territory to share her animals with children outside of Katherine.
"Life is too short to do things you don't want to do or that don't nourish your soul.
"Animals are hard work, but they are valuable for everybody's health.
"Their contribution to people's wellbeing is bigger than words.
"And animals bring people together. No matter where you go - you take a goat or a rabbit along, people can't resist, they'll come to you."
Now the owner of more than 70 creatures, great and small, Mrs Shae and her zoo are a household name around the region.
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"I know families whose little children count the days to Saturday (market day) every week," she said.
"The petting zoo gives children the opportunity to experience what they otherwise would only know from books.
"Some children are scared or suffer from anxiety, but they experience that they can be safe with the animals and they can tell them all their secrets.
"There is a special bond between children and animals, and I believe it is important for a child's wellbeing to foster this bond."
Offering school holiday activities and private parties, Mrs Shae had to hire helpers to keep up with the work.
"My daughter now works for me, serving customers, and it has really helped build her confidence," the animal-lover said.
But Mrs Shae also employs other young people at her mobile zoo.
"I want to give kids an opportunity to do work experience or work in their first ever job in an environment where they can feel safe and understood and where it doesn't matter if they are different."
Only recently Mrs Shae expanded her zoo with a few special additions.
"I've just obtained a license to sell hermit crabs," she said.
With their pink, purple, blue and yellow houses the crabs have become an unusual but much-loved highlight of the Barnyard zoo experience.
But it is Gigabite who steals the show.
At four months old, it is debatable if the baby saltwater crocodile falls into the 'cute' category, but he has quickly become the zoo's main visitor attraction.
"Gigabite is a hit with kids and adults, locals and tourists" Mrs Shae said.
"Everyone wants to see him and hold him.
"Animals - even crocs - bring people together."